Trusting God’s Design for Birth: Birth Settings

5 days ago
3 min read

Updated: 1 day ago

By: Christine Russell, CPM

To understand the why and the purpose and direction of this series, start here.

Understanding Birth Settings

Home – Women are typically most relaxed in their own home due to their normal comfort items/spots/foods being accessible to them as they labor. Obviously, if a woman is afraid of labor, then home could be scary for her without all of the medical supports she believes is important for labor. Most midwives carry all of the medical equipment needed to keep a baby or mother stable for transport, should transport become necessary. Check with your midwife about what equipment she carries with her. The perks to birthing at home is that you don't have to go anywhere after you have your baby. You get tucked into bed and can relax there as long as you would like. Often, the midwife team cleans everything up so that when they leave, it doesn't even look like a birth happened there.

Home-like Birth Suite – Some women prefer to not birth at home due to fears about being at home, logistics of childcare, or lack of comforts at home (tubs, space, etc.). For them, they might be comfortable in a home away from home with many comfort measure options provided for them and at their fingertips. It was important to me as I designed my wellness center to have a birth suite, which we lovingly called Birth Haven, to create a peaceful, homey space for moms to labor in birth in. We have a birth ball and peanut ball, Rebozo scarf, lots of pillows, a large soaking tub, and shower in a private room with extra soundproofing in the walls. The space has its own double door entrance/exit and is tucked away from the rest of the rooms and action in the wellness center. There is a small fridge/freezer in the room with access to a normal sized fridge/freezer in the kitchen, which also provides the laboring family with access to a microwave, stove/oven, toaster oven, coffee maker, tea pot, and dining table.

Birth Center – Birth centers offer some fairly cozy spaces with all of the typical medical equipment you’d find in a hospital except for access to epidurals and are typically run by Certified Nurse Midwives. They are selective about who can birth there, and they tend to be quicker to transfer to the hospital if anything goes against the “normal standards.”

Hospital – Hospitals offer limited comfort measures, all of the medical equipment, and an Operating Room down the hall or close by. There are the typical noises and commotion of the hospital with frequent interruptions of people stopping in to check on your progress and ask questions. Often, continuous monitoring is required or heavily pushed, forcing you to labor in bed or tethered enough to be just out of bed but right next to it. Food and drink is often restricted. The threat of a C-section is always looming. You don’t have much say about how many people or who is present for your birth. You often have to be prepared to fight for your rights and have less control over your baby. Often having a doula with you to help you or your partner advocate for your rights is crucial.